It's that time of the year, New Year, New You! If you've made the decision that in 2018, this is the year you are going to make a conscious effort to go plant-based by far, one of the easiest and most simple fun ways to start eating plant-based is by doing one meat-free day a week like Meatless Monday, Tofu Tuesday, or Salads Sunday.

Here is an example menu of what I eat on a vegetarian Meatless Monday. You could be more adventurous and do a whole vegan day which means no animal-based foods whatsoever.

Breakfast - A bed of greens salad with sugar snap peas, chopped radishes and crumbled sheep cheese. For the greens, I used a mix of arugula and baby kale which is leafier and much softer than mature kale. Trader Joe's sells bagged baby kale in their produce section. A lemon vinaigrette or honey mustard dressing goes well with this salad.

Lunch - Bruschetta grilled cheese sandwich with roasted tomato, garlic and basil coupled with tomato bisque soup. For more protein in this lunch, go with a lentil or black bean soup. For the cheese, I used Daiya's Jalapeno Havarti because I am allergic to dairy. You could use a plant-based cheese with vegan butter to make the sandwich vegan or for vegetarian use your favorite sliced cheese like a pepper jack or provolone. Slice the heirloom tomato. Massage the tomato, and a couple cloves of sliced garlic and a handful of chopped basil leaves with olive oil. Add salt and pepper to tas

Snack - Jicama fries with a garlic Sriracha aioli. This snack is easy and crunchy. Just cut some jicama into fries shape and voilah! For the aioli dip, mix together in a bowl, 4 tablespoons of mayo (I use Just Mayo), 2 cloves of garlic minced, 1 tablespoon lemon juice, 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce (for more heat add more Sriracha,) and a couple pinches of salt and pepper. Mix all the ingredients together well. This aioli is a fantastic spread for sandwiches too.

Dinner - (eating out) This meal was from the Whole Foods hot foods bar but you could make something comparable at home. Roasted acorn squash with Harissa sauce, red quinoa salad with cherry tomatoes and balsamic mushrooms, and a mixed green salad. I added sunflower seeds from some protein. Here is a Harissa recipe from Saveur or you can buy Harissa sauce bottled typically in the condiment section of the grocery store. Here is a wonderful spicy red quinoa salad recipe from Pass Me Some Tasty.

One of the reasons I have mad respect for Gardein is because they make it possible to have plant-based Asian food right at home. Sweet and Sour pork used to be one of my favorite Chinese food dishes, and now I can enjoy that dish without involving any pigs. I'm down with the plant-based meats.

To be honest, I was a little skeptical of these Sweet and Sour Porkless Bites at first because looking at the picture on the bag they look puffy like the Gardein Home Style Beefless Tips which is not in my top faves.

As soon as I took a bite of the cooked Porkless Bites, all that skepticism disappeared. These Porkless Bites are a fabulous way to transition from eating real pork. For a plant-based version of sweet and sour pork, these bites are pretty darn delish and they have 13g of protein per serving which is awesome!

The Porkless Bites are best when you pan fry them in some oil so you get that nice crispy outside similar to the crispy outside you get when ordering real pork sweet and sour at a Chinese restaurant. I love that crispiness! I use avocado oil for pan frying.

Speaking of Chinese restaurants, I added some sauteed carrots, onions, and red pepper to my Sweet and Sour Porkless Bites to make it look restaurant style. So good!

The sauce comes in a separate packet so if you do not like the sauce that comes with the bites or you want to try another sauce like an orange sauce or Peking sauce, you can totally do that.

If you are doing your first plant-based Thanksgiving, let's give you a High-5 my friend! *cheers*

If you decided to go with a turkey meat alternative as your main entree but have no idea which brand to get because hello there are too many choices, this video will give you a good glimpse of what the major brands have to offer.

There was a time when Tofurkey was it. Thankfully, there are many choices and the turkey-less meats are getting better. They do not taste like tofu with turkey flavoring trying real hard to be like turkey yet failing.

The top brands are Tofurkey, Field Roast, and Gardein. Not in the video, another brand to consider is Trader Joe's Turkey-less roast with gravy. I took a picture of the box in the store. I haven't tried it so I cannot attest to its tastiness, but on a few of the vegan Facebook groups I follow, I saw more thumbs up than yucks so that's a good sign.

The aioli bar just went up a few notches. This is one of the best aioli dips I've ever made at home, and it's so good. Besides vegans, those of you who are dairy and egg allergic, hello, you get to enjoy creamy dipping goodness.

My folks tried it and had no idea it was vegan. That's always the real test right?

There is no magic trick to what I did. Anyone can make this at home. What is magical are the ingredients. I have to use vegan mayos because of my egg allergy. Over the years, vegan mayos have gotten better. Let me tell you my friends, the mayosphere has just jumped another level up.

I don't usually get excited about condiments but let's just say that after making this Ninja Squirrel Sriracha aioli, I licked my spoon and bowl clean because I wanted to eat every drop. I'm not ashamed. I could not believe this ailoi was vegan. Mind blown!

Now, the recipe is basic. It's just 3 ingredients. What makes this aioli exceptional again are these two ingredients.

Bonus awesome is that both these products are vegan, gluten-free, and Non-GMO Project verified. I'm glad food producers like these folks exist because for people like me who have food allergies and are sensitive to artificial ingredients and preservatives, we no longer feel like we have to compromise. We get to enjoy just like everyone else, and that feeling of being normal is big. BIG, I tell you.

Hampton Creek does have their own Sriracha flavored Just Mayo and it's good. But, I love the Ninja Squirrel Sriracha better.

The Ninja Squirrel Sriracha is sold exclusively at Whole Foods. Here's a huge bottle of the sriracha in the hot food bar at Whole Foods Oakland. Look for the Ninja Squirrel logo. You cannot miss it. The squirrel is so cute.

What I love about this Ninja Squirrel Sriracha is that it's on the sweeter side and just a tad less burning on the tongue than the Rooster Sriracha most of us are used to seeing in Asian restaurants. Plus, the squirrel does not have potassium sorbate or sodium bisulfite as preservatives like the Rooster does.

I'm a medium heat, not a set-my-tongue-on-fire kinda eater and sometimes Sriracha can be too much which is why I only use dabs, but with the squirrel, I can eat way more of it. I'm not kidding, I've been pouring the squirrel on almost everything.

The third ingredient in my ailoi is garlic powder. If you want to get fancy, use real crushed garlic. I'm too lazy so some organic garlic powder is just fine for me.

I simply mixed together 1/4 cup (4 tbsp) of Just Mayo with 1 heaping tbsp of the Ninja Squirrel Sriracha and a couple dashes of garlic powder. Simple. Done.

I also made Ninja Squirrel Ketchup by mixing in some of the Sriracha with organic ketchup like seen in the photo. OMG! So GOOD with French fries.

You can use this aioli on sandwiches and to dip other yummy vegetables into it. I think next I'll make a potato salad with it. Try this aioli and let me know what you think!

I think this salad is a knockout, and totally reminds me of a lovely, spa day with the girls to replenish and bask in the sweet taste of, "All I do is win."

This red stunner goes really well with a bellini and fills you with protein, good fat, sweetness without added sugar, fiber, whole grain, and fresh herbs. Normally, we don't often see strawberries in grain salads but maybe it's time because strawberries add a fun natural fruity sweetness.

The fresh fennel complements the strawberries well like a Sandra Bullock and Ryan Reynolds after the first kiss kind of tenderness. See what I did there?

Since, we're speaking of berries from the farmers market, you could do a version of this salad using cranberries, raspberries or blackberries. That would be some fun experimenting.

Something important to note, I always buy organic strawberries because according to the EWG Dirty Dozen, strawberries rank 2nd with the most pesticide residue.

This couscous salad is also super easy to make and great to take to a picnic, BBQ or brunch. You could use regular couscous, but I like Israeli couscous for this dish because of it's pearl-like texture.

Ingredients (serves 4-5):

3 cups cooked Israeli Couscous

8 strawberries thinly sliced

1/2 large avocado sliced into cubes

2 sprigs of fresh fennel chopped

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Salad dressing:

1 tbsp honey

1 tsp dijon mustard

2 tbsp olive oil

Juice from 1/2 of a lime

Salt and pepper to taste

To make the dressing, mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl really well. If you want a little more tang, add either more mustard or lime juice.

In a big mixing bowl, put in the couscous, strawberries, fennel, and walnuts. Pour the dressing into the bowl and massage by hand mixing everything together.

Toss in the avocado cubes and hand mix them into the salad.

Using your hands to mix everything together versus using a spoon coats the couscous with dressing better plus is less damaging to the delicacy of the strawberries and avocado, not to mention you are mixing in some literal hand lovin' - good energy.

I love summer burger bowls! What a fun way to get a bite of summer with no bread. I did a veggie burger bowl here. You can use any of your favorite pre-made veggie burgers. Some of my favorites include Hillary's, Amy's Kitchen, and Dr. Praeger's.

I placed my veggie burger on a bed of a mix of organic arugula and spinach.

The veggie burger is then topped with chopped organic heirloom tomatoes and avocado I got from the farmer's market along with some sauteed red onions and BBQ sauce. I sprinkled on some flax seeds for more protein.

The avocados were actually in a cosmetically challenged bin. These are great deals at farmers market. The food is still good, it just isn't "show" pretty.

There is so many amazing things you can can find during the summer at your local farmer's markets. Go check them out and see what foods you can find for burger toppings.

I noticed at Trader Joe's the other day in the bagged greens area that they had red heirloom spinach which you know I had to buy because it's different, and the spinach looked more purple than red to me.

I cannot resist purple food!

Happily, I have discovered that when you start to cook this gorgeous red heirloom that indeed it does start to darken and look purple.

For fun, to sneak in more nutrients, I chopped up some of the heirloom spinach and added it to my baked red pepper, mushroom and sun-dried tomato spaghetti. So pretty, huh?!

I baked the spaghetti first for 15 minutes at 350, and when I took it out of the oven, I added the spinach. Spinach doesn't need much heat to cook so the spaghetti right out of the often was perfect.

Next time you hit TJs, look for the red heirloom spinach in the greens section.

The Winter Fancy Food Show in San Francisco is always a great way to start off the year seeing new food products. Here are the Top 8 Best Vegan Foods and Drinks that I thought are exciting game changers.

There were plenty of great vegan foods at the show, but the ones that got my attention are ones that create a whole new window of opportunity for vegan and plant-based eaters. I was especially excited to see some awesome organic, vegan Asian cooking products.

Simple Mills organic, low-sugar frostings come in vanilla and chocolate and they are smooth, creamy, and delicious. Game changer quality - I have never seen a can of organic AND vegan frosting in retail ever before which is one reason I have never tried to make vegan cake or cupcakes at home. I’m too impatient to make frosting from scratch, so seeing this frosting was cool.

But the thing that put it over the top is the fact that these two frostings only have 8g and 6g of sugar each for the Vanilla and Chocolate respectively. I was blown away because these frostings are sweet. They do not taste like low-sugar frosting AT ALL. The secret is Monk Fruit. Who knew.

Milkadamia Latte Da GMO-free milk. The Milkadamia regular and unsweetened macadamia nut based milk is my favorite brand and type of plant-based milk. I have a mild allergy to almond milk so that’s out for me. Milkadamia is based in Australia where they grow all their macadamia nuts. And the guys who own and run the company are just happy, cool guys!

Game changer quality - I was blown away by howthick and creamy smooth my latte drink was. They made this milk specifically to be used to make lattes and they nailed it. Almond milk doesn’t come close to the thickness and richness of this Latte Da milk. The secret ingredient they use for thickener is Yam flour. So creative! Instead of loading it with more gums they used a flour which is less inflammatory in the gut compared to gums.

I seriously cannot wait for this Latte Da milk to hit retail which will be about mid-year. If you are a coffee shop and want to make good vegan latte drinks, you gotta hit up Milkadamia for this new milk.

Good Pop

GoodPop GMO-free Orange N' Cream popsicle. I LOVED Orangesicles as a kid. It was my favorite popsicle so I associate that treat with happy childhood memories. But then I find out I had a dairy allergy and so bye-bye Orangesicles.

But no more! Game changer quality - This vegan Orange N' Cream popsicle made with coconut cream is so close to my original love version that I couldn’t believe it. AND each popsicle only has 80 calories. WIN!

This fabulous Orange N' Cream treat will be available this Spring in retail. Summer just got more exciting!

genuine grub

genuine grub organic, MSG-free fried rice sauce. Okay if you’re Asian you’re probably thinking why on earth would anyone buy a fried rice sauce because I can make that all at home easily? Well, I’m Asian and I think this sauce is a BRILLIANT idea. Why? Because it has ALL the ingredients to make fried rice in ONE bottle, and it gives you Chinese restaurant tasting fried rice.

Game changer quality - The fact that this fried rice sauce gives you the Chinese restaurant level of taste. I’ve made fried rice at home tons of times but it NEVER tastes like the stuff you get if you go eat at a Chinese restaurant. There is a special taste and you know it when you eat it and Genuine Grub has pretty much nailed it in a one bottle solution. You don’t have to measure anything, guess quantities of various ingredients, you just use this ONE sauce with rice, some peas, carrots and corn, boom done, we’re eating.

All of Genuine Grubs sauces, the fried rice and the two Korean BBQ sauces are GMO-free, MSG-free, and have NO preservatives which is near impossible to find in Asian sauces. Believe me I have looked for years. Arrow root is used as thickener instead of gums which is another game changing quality.

Genuine Grub is also the lovechild of a solo entrepreneur Dan Fruin who had a dream and went for it. He is a really cool guy with great energy so let’s help him make that dream come true because his vision and his sauces are really exceptional.

The Fried Rice sauce will be available in retail late Winter or Spring. The Korean BBQ sauces are available now.

Let's Do Organic

Sold by Edward & Sons Trading Co., Inc., Let's Do... Organic® organic, sweetened condensed coconut milk. Game changer quality - For the longest time there was no such thing as vegan sweetened condensed milk you could buy at the store. You had to make it at home if you could. But, no more!

Imagine now all the recipes you can make that call for condensed milk that you couldn’t make before like puddings, ice cream, and cream pie. The first thing I thought of was Filipino Halo Halo. This Let's Do Organic sweetened condensed coconut milk is so good!

Besides being organic, this condensed milk does not have any gums which is awesome. You can buy this in retail now.

Honorable mention

Also sold by Edward & Sons Trading Co., Inc., Honorable Mention:Let's Do... Organic® organic, Heavy Coconut Cream. I wanted to include this product as an honorable mention mostly for people sensitive to gums and Paleo eaters who want a coconut cream that has NO gums like guar gum which most canned coconut milk and creams have. This stuff is just organic coconut milk and water. Simple.

So this one isn’t about just one top product but about an entire line. As mentioned in the Genuine Grub post, finding organic, vegan, MSG-free, food coloring free, and preservative-free Asian sauces, spices, and condiments in the U.S. is like near impossible because the Asian stores don’t usually carry it, the natural foods stores do but the selection is often scant in these stores because the percentage of Asian shoppers is not as high.

There is basically a couple brands that dominate in the U.S that meet the criteria but their selection is more American-centric sticking to things like teriyaki sauce, black bean sauce, and tamari. And these brands are based in the U.S. Muso is based in Japan where everything is made.

Game changer quality - I walk up to the Japan Gold USA booth and I cannot believe my eyes. They are a U.S. distributor for Muso International based in Japan. There is a cornucopia of organic, vegan, MSG-free, food coloring free, and preservative-free Asian sauces, spices, and condiments which are all made in Japan adhering to a macrobiotic standard. I’m like in heaven!

Immediately I see this organic umami and ask if it’s vegan and it is. WHAT!! I’m really excited because it is both organic and vegan. Next to the umami is organic smoked Shoyu which is another thing you won’t find at the natural foods store. The smoke flavoring can help give your food a cool Asian grilled flavor. This shoyu is smoked using cherry wood chips. Doesn’t that sound incredible? And it is, the flavor of it is robust and smooth.

After I try the umami and smoked Shoyu, I see organic Nama Shoyu, an unpasteurized soy sauce, White Nama Shoyu which is a soy-free soy sauce like seasoning, Ume vinegar, and brown rice vinegar. Again, rare to see these products here in the U.S. in organic versions free of all the additives.

What really caught my eye was the I sea bacon. I had heard about this stuff before and was so curious to try it but they didn’t have any samples out just bags on display. When cooked, this seaweed tastes like bacon. If that is true and it is good then that is definitely a plant-based game changer. Here is the website for it to learn more:https://seamorefood.com/product/i-sea-bacon/

I really hope Japan Gold USA scores some good retail meetings at the Fancy Food show because I want to see these awesome products available everywhere here in the U.S. so that vegan and plant-based eaters can experience a much wider variety of Asian flavors. It really is incredible!

Kuli Kuli

Kuli Kuli GMO-free Moringa Green Energy Shots. One of my food trend predictions is that Moringa is going to be the next big superfood. Moringa is the next Acai Berry. Moringa has powerful anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, and tissue-protective properties. It has been used for generations in Eastern countries to treat and prevent diseases such as diabetes, heart disease, anemia, arthritis, liver disease, and respiratory, skin, and digestive disorders.*

So when I heard of Moringa in an energy shot I had to try it and WOW!

Game changer quality - this stuff had me wired in a minute. It felt almost instantaneous, and I only had a small amount about a tablespoon size of it. Some energy shots make me jittery too but this one did not. I just felt like superwoman and could have run a 5K in personal record breaking time. Fun!

This Kuli Kuli GMO-free Moringa Green Energy Shot has the caffeine equal to 1 cup of coffee, has 1/2 cup of leafy greens, all 9 essential amino acids, and is high in vitamins A, C, and E. Later in the day, they made margaritas using some of the coconut lime Moringa shots and that is the perfect cocktail to have before a night of dancing. You’ll be tearing up that dance floor!!

The story of Lisa Curtis, the Founder of Kuli Kuli is amazing too. She’s a former Peace Corps volunteer and created Kuli Kuli as a social venture that has economically helped women-led farming cooperatives in Africa and Haiti. She started her initial funding on Indiegogo. Read more about Lisa and the company here. You will be inspired!

Vegan Rob's

Vegan Rob's Turmeric and Ginger Puffs. Before I found out I had a dairy allergy, one of my favorite salty, crunchy treat foods was cheese puffs because i really love the airy, crunchy texture of a puff. Bye bye went the cheese puffs but years later there are now more vegan puffs out on the market.

Game changer quality - There are a bunch of puffs on the market and even Vegan Rob’s has a whole line of different flavored puffs but the Turmeric and Ginger puff by far is the best I’ve ever tried in vegan puffs mainly because of the flavor profile.

Their recipe featuring turmeric and ginger is brilliant and it is really delicious. You are getting some medicinal benefits while snacking. No joke I could eat a whole bag of these puffs in one sitting because they are that good.

One of the top rages in plant-based food right now is meat that bleeds. I know it sounds weird that something made of plants could bleed like a rare burger, but Beyond Meat and Impossible Foods are the top two contenders in that race.

I haven't tried the Beyond Meat, Beyond Burger yet. It just arrived at Veggie Grill which is like 33 miles away from me so it's a trip, but I have tried the Impossible Burger at Cockscomb in SF.

OMG! I don't know how else to describe this burger. I was blown away by not only how good it was but how close the taste and texture is to real ground beef. This Impossible Burger exceeded my expectations which is a REAL high bar to cross.

Here is a video clip of my reaction and a look at the burger itself. All I gotta say is you MUST try it. You will LOVE it! And meat eaters will enjoy it.

Hampton Creek has been knocking it out of the ballpark with their plant-based foods, and I gotta say that one of my new favorites from them is their Just Ranch salad dressing.

I could not believe this dressing is vegan. It is really creamy just like regular Ranch dressing and has an incredible flavor. Here is the Ranch on some green salad I had for lunch.

And even more cool, is that this Just Ranch is GMO-Free. Hampton Creek is proving that you can make incredible tasting food without any animals nor genetically modified organisms. It is just food.

There is a difference between the Just Ranch sold at Whole Foods and the one sold at Target.

The one at Whole Foods does not have the preservative in it that extends shelf life because it's a prohibited ingredient for WF selling standards so look for it in the produce area where the chilled dressings are located. In Target, the Just Ranch is in the regular salad dressing aisle.